Episodes of Three
by Nautica7mk
Summary: Lois searches for a future.
1. Episode 1 Beginnings

**Title**: Lois Lane: Beginnings  
**Author**: Nadia Mack  
**Rating**: PG  
**Disclaimer**: I Own Nothing  
**Timeline**: Post-Commencement, End of summer 2005  
**Summary**: Three-Part Story. Beginnings, New Heights and Converge.  
**Author's Notes**: Corny title, I know. But I needed something simplistic, not complicated. This has been swerving in my head for a while, and so I thought to finally commit it to paper. This is sort of a mini-series that takes place after the events of Commencement. I'm posting this here even though the first two parts is a Lois story and the CLOIS part in it doesn't come in until Converge. I kind of needed the buildup, ya know.

The day Clark Kent had returned is the day that she left.

Lois Lane had spent the summer helping Martha and Jonathan Kent get back on their feet after the tragic events of the second meteor shower that hit Smallville, Kansas twice in one generation.

She had gone against her father's wishes to go to Europe to find her younger sister Lucy after the meteor's hit. Lois knew that Lucy would be all right for the time being and that she was needed in Smallville.

Truth is, he wanted no daughter of his in ground zero, but despite their differences, Lois is her father's daughter and she won out in the end.

It caused their relationship to falter even more than it already has.

Fortunately for Lois, she had no regrets.

- On a United Flight 747 to Tokyo, Japan -

As soon as the plane was securely in the air, Lois took out her laptop and activated her wireless nic card. Moving the cursor to an AOL Instant Messaging icon, she clicked it open and logged in, hoping to catch her cousin, Chloe Sullivan online.

_Lane: Chloe?  
Sullivan: Lois… where are you?  
Lane: In the air  
Sullivan: What? I thought your flight didn't leave for another 2 days?  
Lane: Change of plans  
Sullivan: Did you know that Clark is back?  
Lane: Yes  
Sullivan: Why didn't you see him, he's been asking about you?  
Lane: I was in a hurry  
Sullivan: I wish you didn't leave so quickly  
Lane: Sorry cuz, I have my reasons  
Sullivan: You could've least said bye  
Lane: Bye  
Sullivan: Lois!  
Lane: Sorry, j/k. Look, I can't explain, but I can't be there right now, as much as the place have grown on me, I needed to leave  
Sullivan: When will you be back?  
Lane: I don't know_

Lois looked up from her screen and noticed that seat belt light blink on. She looked around herself and so people adjusting their areas and felt the movement of some rough turbulence.

_Lane: Gotta go, cuz. Flight attendant's giving me a mean eye. I'll call you when I land, I promise. Love ya.  
Sullivan: Love you too. Take care of yourself.  
Lane: I will bye  
Sullivan: Bye_

Lois closed the application and put her screen on sleep mode before closing it shut and stuffing it in its bag. She leaned back and took a deep breath, her hand covering her belt making sure that it's securely fastened.

A week later...

"You shouldn't have come here!" the young girl yelled.

"Lucy!" Lois stood steadfast, her voice rose.

"How the hell did you find me anyway?" her younger sister spat out angrily. She was really testing Lois' patience and tolerance.

"Doesn't matter how I found you, Luce. This has to end"

"Just leave me alone, I don't need you. I've been doing fine on my own"

"Right," Lois mocked disappointedly. "Look at yourself, Luce. What happened to you? You had a lot going for you, and instead of making something out of yourself, you're here, alone and without any cash. How long do you think you're going to survive doing this?"

"ME!" she began to yell again. "What about you? It's not like you're doing any better," Lucy lashed out bitterly.

"I don't need you, Lois"

"Apparently not"

Her baby sister's words hit her hard. For three months, she has spent trying to comprehend everything that had happened in Smallville when the meteors hit, watching the devastation around her, with her eyes unable to break away… the destruction, the senseless loss of innocent people. She woke many up nights hoping it had all been a nightmare.

But it wasn't.

It was real.

And she felt absolutely helpless.

It didn't end there.

She guessed that's why she's in Tokyo right now, trying her best to understand her sister's motivation, but she could find none. She was angry and tired, angry that she thought so little of herself for most of her life and tired that she didn't have the strength to change it.

When the day ended, Lois was left alone once again. Lucy had skipped out sometime during dinner. Unbeknownst to the younger sibling, Lois knew. She knew that letting her go now was the only thing she could do for her, and when Lucy was ready, she'll call her.

Sadly, she knew if Lucy called her, it'd be to get her out of yet another jam.

The thought saddened her.

- Fall of 2005 – Wales, England -

Lois Lane actually got herself in a course she was sure her cousin Chloe would be proud of. Frankly, she needed something to do with her time in England other than working all day, so she enrolled herself in a local community college, taking up entry-level writing in Journalism.

She made a point not to tell Chloe about it in their weekly chats. Last thing she needed right now is her enthusiasm over the subject whereas Lois really didn't care.

"All right, everyone!" the professor voiced out to his outgoing students. "Your papers are due next Monday," he reminded everybody as they all exited.

Lois was the last one to leave.

"Miss Lane," Professor Dela Vega called out.

She stops in her tracks and turns around.

"Yes"  
"Miss Lane, if you don't mind I asking, is there any reason why you find my class to be a complete bore?"

Lois was a bit taken aback by the observation. She had hoped she didn't look that obvious. She knew she shouldn't have fallen asleep the other day.

"Excuse me?"

"I read your paper from the previous assignment," he says.

Lois shifted a bit uneasily. "I can explain that," she says in a defense she didn't know what she was defending herself about. "I had this one problem…"

"I read it, Miss Lane. If there were any problems, I'd know," he interrupted.

She looks oddly at the man who looked not-so-bad in his early fifties. "Wait… did you say 'if' there were problems?"

His face remained indifferent. "Aside from a couple of spelling errors, I thought it was rather good"

"Good." Good's good she thought.

"Of course, it can be better," he added. He gestures to chair. "Please, sit." Lois did was she was told, and that sort of thing doesn't happen all that often.

"What is this about?" Lois began wondering curiously. She didn't recall him calling in any other students before or maybe she was just not paying attention.

"I've been watching you," he revealed.

She wished he didn't. "Okay. Ew," she remarked.

The professor gives her a low chuckle. "I have an assignment for you"

Lois raised her eyebrows. "You do?"

He nodded. "Here," he says, handing her a file.

She reluctantly takes it. "What do you want me to do with it?"

"Report," he simply answered.

Lois laughs. "Uh… yeah, right. I think you've got the wrong girl"

"Leave the judging to me, Miss Lane"

"This isn't part of the syllabus," she argued. She really didn't want to be wandering around town trying to find a story she had no interest in. It's like The Torch all over again, but in a different continent and a different editor.

"It is now"

"That isn't fair; I don't have time for this"

"Make time, Miss Lane or fail my class," he threatened in a very proper and almost sympathetic way.

"You can't do that"

"Time will tell that, now won't it"

Lois stands up, obviously upset and barges out of the class room. In the corner of the room, another older man steps out, a professor himself.

"A little young for you, don't you think Dela Vega?" he approached in amusement.

Professor Dela Vega smiles himself. "She has potential Andrew but she lacks motivation"

"So you're taking it upon yourself to be her mentor"

"I see greatness in her," he admits.

Andrew puts his hand on his shoulder, squeezing it lightly. "Then I will be here to help you if you need it, old friend"

- 3 Months Later -

Having brunch outside on a bright sunny day, Lois and her Professor were having a nice cup of tea. Actually, he was having the tea and she was filling up on her daily caffeine fix.

"Take a look," the Professor says, tapping on a section of the newspaper with his finger.

She looks at it and is momentarily shocked. "What? No way!" Lois says her face a picture of disbelief. She grabs the newspaper. "That's me. I mean… that's my article."

Professor Dela Vega continued to look at her with indifference.

She put the paper down and went about with her coffee. "All right, not so great," she concluded based on her professor's obvious somber expression.

"No, you did a great job, Lois. I'm very proud of you," he assured, lifting his cup to take another sip of his fine English tea.

"Then what's wrong? Isn't this what you wanted from me?" Lois asks confused. For three months, distinguished Professor Dela Vega has taken her under his wing, teaching her the ins and outs of journalism.

"You're honest and you're passionate," he says.

"But…" she knew there was one.

"But your purpose, your ambition is absent. This…" he says lifting her article before her. "… Is a good article." When he has her undivided attention, he explains further. "I know you can do better"

"So you keep saying," she responds, a little irritated by his constant scrutiny. "You're asking a lot from me," she added looking defeated.

"You have to find your stories, Lois. You can't always depend on someone giving it to you. It's a good article, but its child's play"

"Well then you might have to check your roster again, because last I remember, I'm not majoring in Journalism!" she argued defiantly with him. Their relationship is becoming just like the one with her father, The General, except she actually enjoys The Professor's company.

"Maybe you should," he smoothly suggested.

"I mean… excuse me what?" She might have to get her ears checked, that last few months has been a whirlwind for her.

Professor Dela Vega looked serious.

"You can't be serious"

"Why not… You have the gift"

She laughs it off. "The only gift in me is the one I find in a place that starts with an 'm' and ends with 'all.' Professor, you're wasting your time with me when there are worthier people out there"

"Is that so?" he says unconvinced. He looks away from her and spots a beautiful two story building. "See that resident building over there?" he points out.

Lois follows his gaze and nods. "Yeah," she uttered warily. She can already see where this was going.

"Wave to me from one of those windows," he lightly ordered.

"You've got to be kidding me." When he didn't say anything, she quickly stood up. "Okay, okay… jeez. Wouldn't hurt you to smile once in a while"

"You have ten minutes," he added. "Good luck"

Lois sighed.

Just as he expected, Lois was up and looking through the window acting as a guest in the old woman's apartment with her own cup of tea in her hands. He shook his head in great amusement, and she didn't even need 10 minutes. He smiled.

- 6 Months Later -

"I can't believe this," Lois says to no one in particular as she read the document in her hand over and over and over again. "I got in"

She read it again.

Dear Lois Lane,

Congratulations on your acceptance to the University of California, Los Angeles.

She still couldn't believe it.

My very best wishes to you for a successful collegiate experience, and I sincerely hope you will be joining us here at UCLA in the fall.

She put the letter down and took an incredibly deep breath. A few seconds went by when she felt a warm hand rest above her shoulder.

"Congratulations"

Lois spun and around and jumped in his arms with excitement. "Professor, I got in!" she says excitedly before letting him go in one piece and putting her hand to her forehead. "I really got in." The words were incredibly foreign to her yet incredibly satisfying.

"You've worked hard this year. You actually paid attention in class"

She smiles sheepishly. "Couldn't help it, you kept threatening to fail me"

"Only as a last resort"

"That was it?"

He shrugged. "It worked didn't it"

After a moment, Lois worked up the courage to say, "Thank You."

"You're welcome"

She took a deep breath and smiled. One hurdle down, one more to go.

Tuition

That's going to be a doozy.

"Is there something troubling you?" he noticed.

"No, it's just… I was just thinking over my options in regards to the tuition"

"That's already been taken cared of"

Lois is taken aback. Professor has done a lot to get her where she was, she wasn't going to allow him to do everything for her.

"I won't take it"

"I'm not giving it to you, Lois, you're going to earn your tuition," he explained.

She returns it with a blank expression. "Huh?"

"I made a few calls, asked a few favors and there's an opening," he continued to explain. "The Los Angeles Times staff is going under a… reorganization phase. It'll do you some good to get some official non-freelancing experience"

Lois was dumbstruck.

"You may even meet a nice fella and bring him over for tea some time, perhaps that Kent boy you speak rarely about"

She scoffs, slightly amused. Sometimes she wished he wasn't so darn attentive. Her face quickly softens. "I don't know what to say"

"Always be honest, it's all I ask." Lois' eyes begin to glisten with tears as he continued. "Watch them, Lois. See all the right and all the wrong that they do, so you can make yourself better. We're not perfect… far from it actually, but there are people in this world that strive for a better place. Some of that ambition can be dangerous and I want you to be aware; I do not want you to falter. I want you to believe"

Lois smiled graciously.

This was it.


	2. Episode 2 New Heights

**Title**: Lois Lane: New Heights  
**Author**: Nadia Mack  
**Rating**: PG  
**Disclaimer**: I Own Nothing  
**Timeline**: Post-Commencement, End of summer 2005  
**Summary**: Three-Part Story. Beginnings, New Heights and Converge.

- Los Angeles, CA 2006 –

Summer has ended and classes began without sympathy. First month in and Lois is already feeling the exhaustion. Her professor overseas has made it a priority to communicate with her via-video conferencing on a weekly basis.

The Los Angeles Times were a whole other ball game. They kept her inside doing miniscule reporting from school plays to restaurant openings. It was nothing grand, but The Professor made a point to remind her that everyone starts somewhere. The chances are out there, it's up to her to make it happen.

She chuckled at the thought.

The next couple of months went by fast; Lois felt she hadn't aged at all. Sitting in the courtyard, she was doing the finishing touches of her paper in her comparative studies class. It was a good thing she isn't as allergic to reading as she is to dogs, but then again, she was even missing that old mutt.

She thought about calling the Kent's more often, but she deeply felt afraid to do so. Now, she just simply resorts to writing Mr. and Mrs. Kent monthly handwritten letters. She found writing it herself to be a lot more personable than electronically sending it through e-mail.

Clark on the other hand, she wasn't going to get into.

Not yet.

"Ahem," a man cleared his throat from behind. Lois looks over.

"Andrew!" she says, launching herself towards him with a big bear hug. "What are you doing on the other side of the world?"

"I just launched my book tour last week"

"Last week?" she replied wide-eyed. "That was…"

"Unexpected," he finished. "It certainly was"

Lois laughs. "Don't you have anything better to do than visit young college girls," she teased.

Andrew, who was about the same age as Professor Dela Vega, gleamed. "Well, you know me," he smiled.

- 15 minutes later -

"So how is he?" Lois asks as she and Andrew walked through the campus.

"He misses you," revealed Andrew. "You know, he may kill me for this but in some ways, you remind him of his daughter"

Lois stopped and reviewed his words. "Professor has a daughter?" He never mentioned that to her.

"Oh," he says noting his mistake. "I thought you knew"

She shook her head. "Can you tell me about her?" She should be angry, but for some reason she wasn't. Maybe it was the way he said it, like it was very sad.

"She died before she reached her eighteenth birthday; he was coming home to surprise her when it happened"

She frowned at the revelation and reluctantly asks the next question.

"What happened?"

"Drive-by shooting," he answered, reliving the memories himself. He had been there with his friend when it happened, but she didn't need to know that.

Lois' eyes began to glisten with tears but she held it from falling and simply remained silent. She realized now why The Professor was always so committed to helping her, teaching her not just how to report and find her stories, but how to keep herself from getting hurt.

"What about you?" Andrew changed the subject, Lois had been silently grateful.

"Nothing much," she says. "A little trouble here, some attitude there. The Times are really warming up to me," she adds with a smile.

"I assume that means they haven't given you a cover story yet"

"Yes, but I have to make sure to be more annoying next time," she said rather proudly.

Andrew smirks. "Is that even possible?"

She slaps him lightly on the arm. "Funny… didn't think you chaps had it in you," she replied with a British imitation of her own.

"Touché, Miss Lane. Touché"

- Smallville, Kansas -

Clark was speeding through the house, tidying things up for his parents return. They had left earlier today to head to Metropolis for his dad's check up. Stacking things together and wiping desks clean, the bottom drawer of one of the shelves breaks open.

He speeds out to the barn to grab a hammer and nails to fix it. Removing it, he noticed a familiar handwriting written across an envelope.

He lifted it and looked at it carefully. Flipping it over and back as if the identity of the sender would appear. Then he noticed that there wasn't a return address.

"Hmm," he says. He normally isn't an eavesdropper when it came to his family's possessions, but there was something familiar about the handwriting. Against good judgment, he succumbs to the curiosity.

Removing it from the already opened envelope, he suddenly wished he hadn't.

_Hey Mrs. Kent, _

Lois here. I wanted to say 'hey' like my first line said. I miss you guys, Shelby too, but don't tell him cuz he'll pounce on me if I can get myself to visit you someday. All is good in the land down under… wait… that's Australia, and I'm not there. Actually, I'm in the Mother Country right now. You should see it some day, everyone here is so ridiculously proper, they prefer tea over mocha's and cappuccino… what has the world come to?

Clark chuckled out loud as he read the first few lines. He stopped immediately when he realized how evasive he was becoming, but was saddened when he skimmed the entire letter and saw nothing pertaining to him.

It was only over a year ago where they were, in a way, sort of inseparable. He'd talk, she would make fun of him, it was all so fun and light, and now, it's like he doesn't even exist, not even in her words.

He knew disappearing for almost three months was a big reason, but he didn't think she would cut him off so completely. She didn't even give him a chance to explain, and by the time he realized there was something wrong, she was already gone.

Just like that.

Not even a goodbye. Hell, he would've taken a 'go to hell' but no, nothing.

A now this… she kept in touch, probably with everyone but him. He was also aware that she kept in touch with Chloe, but every time he asked Chloe about it, she would sadly nod her head and say 'she didn't mention you, but I think she was in a hurry.'

He scoffs at the lie. 'Yeah, right,' he thought angrily. Lois would always give Chloe her undivided attention, there was no way a conversation between them would ever be a hurry.

- Several Minutes Later -

"Sweetheart," his mother called out from the porch, arriving home with her husband from Metropolis. "We're home," she entered seeing her son sitting on the couch with all her letters. "Clark," she whispered, only imagining what her son might be thinking.

He lifted all the letters he found in the drawer, his eyes tearing.

"I'm sorry, mom," he uttered softly. "I was just trying to fix it when…" he couldn't finish his words and just buried his head in his hands.

"Oh Clark," Martha raced to her son's side and embraced him.

Jonathan entered the room. "Martha, what's wrong?" He saw Clark clutching the letters Lois had written to him and Martha. He immediately sat on the other side of the couch. He reached out to take the letters from him but Clark just held on tighter.

"I'm sorry," he kept saying.

"Clark, sorry for what?" Martha wondered as she tried to sooth her boy.

"For… everything," he says abruptly getting up, standing in the middle of the room.

He sorted through his thoughts and found that he couldn't. He needed to let it out. "Did you know that there's nothing here about me," he pointed out, his anger suddenly outweighing the hurt in him. "It's like we were never even friends"

"Clark…"

"No, Mom! Look at all these…" he points out all the letters Lois has sent to them for the past year and a half. "Why am I feeling this way?" he desperately asked. "She's never called, she doesn't write to me or even about me! At least if she told me she hated me, I'd know where she stands, but not even that! And why didn't you tell me about these?" He felt the walls closing in on him.

He rushed out of there and to his barn loft to be left alone before Martha and Jonathan could get a word in.

"Jonathan…"

"I'll go talk to him, sweetheart," he says, kissing her forehead.

- The Loft -

"Clark"

"I just want to be left alone"

"No you don't, at least not right now," he says thoughtfully.

"Have you spoken to her?" He asked, really wanting to know. Clark had thought he'd put the events of the second meteor shower behind him, but he guessed not.

"No, Clark, we haven't." He sat next to his son on the floor. "The first letter she sent was from Tokyo, she was there to find Lucy"

"Oh"

"Yeah, after that, she didn't seem to stay in one place, probably why there was never a return address"

"She didn't want anyone to visit her," Clark concluded sadly.

"You can't think that way"

"What am I suppose to think? I don't even know where she is or if she's really okay. For all I know, she's out in California becoming a hobo"

Jonathan raised his eyebrows.

"Nevermind," Clark waved off, the memory of Lois ranting about needing a place to stay coming into the forefront of his mind. His argumentative moments with the military brat were always one of the most memorable.

"You think she's ever coming back," Clark asks, his voice going low.

Jonathan puts a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "I have a feeling that we'll be seeing Lois Lane a lot more than we think"

Clark chuckled softly; it was nice of him to try.

- Los Angeles, CA Summer of 2007 -

At Los Angeles International Airport, Lois waited anxiously for her cousin, Chloe Sullivan to exit the terminal. It's been two years since they've seen each other. Sure they've talked on the phone and exchanged e-mails, but it's not the same.

"CHLOE!" she screamed excitedly, running up to her.

"LOIS!" Chloe dropped her bags and ran to hug her cousin. "Oh my God, you're gorgeous," she adds before hugging Lois again.

"I've so missed you, little cousin." They let go again. "Come on, let's get out of here before security haul's us out," Lois says playfully.

"I'm glad the Lois I know hasn't changed"

- Café Luna -

Chloe sat there listening vigilante at everything that's been going on in her older cousin's life since she left Smallville two years ago. She couldn't quite believe that this was the same person who didn't have a direction or goal in life. It was all quite amazing.

"Wow," Chloe could only say.

"Yeah, I'm still getting over it myself; I just hadn't had the time to dwell on it. They've been working me like crazy on top of all the class I have"

"You're… in… journalism," Chloe says, the revelation still a little jarring and surprising and awesome at the same time. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"I wasn't sure I was even cut out for it, or even if it's something I remotely wanted. I needed something to do, and my Professor was very 'pushy' about it…" she laughed. "I didn't want any expectations in case I dropped it. Turns out, somewhere in between hating it and doing it, I actually began liking it"

"Wow," Chloe continued on.

"I know," she says, it was hard believing it herself.

"Does that mean we could open a paper together?"

"Chloe!"

She shrugs. "What? It was just a thought." The idea of doing exposé's and reporting world-class news with her favorite person in the whole wide world, even more favorite than a certain farm boy was making her very happy. Thinking of Clark…

"Have you spoken to Clark lately?" Lois didn't seem unhappy to hear her ask about him, but then again, she didn't look happy either.

"No," she ignored expressing otherwise.

"Why not?" Chloe pressed.

"No reason"

"It'd mean a lot to him if you can say hello"

"No," she continued to stand by her words.

"Why not?"

"No reason, why are we even talking about this? This trip is about you and me… not boys"

"This isn't just about a boy, Lois, this is about Clark. You've avoided him for the past two years. Literally!" she emphasized. "Two years is a long time to avoid someone, and to be honest, he's been crabby since you left"

Lois laughed at that. "It can't be that serious, he must've been happy to finally see me gone," she stated, unaware of just how wrong she was.

"You're wrong"

Lois avoided the subject of Clark Kent as best as she could during her stay, but the Lane-Sullivan family didn't give up so easily. They're a stubborn bunch. Look at Lucy; she's still off gallivanting the world doing God knows what. She hopes that she gets all her rebellious tendencies out of her system soon, she was beginning to worry more so than usual.

- A Month Later -

"Hey Professor," Lois says over the phone. She had just finished explaining to him her final plans for the year. All the writing she has done for the L.A. Times have garnered her lots of credits that more than made up for her failure to complete her first year in Met-U a few years ago after getting kick-out.

"So going back to Met-U, huh?"

"Yup, that's the plan. Enrollment has been set, and I've saved up enough money to rent an apartment so I don't have to worry about dormitory life. Been there, done that, not planning on doing that again"

The Professor gives out a hearty laugh.

"I'm glad you're happy"

"Thanks to you," she says.

"If you insist on giving me credit, I can't very well refuse"

It was Lois' turn to laugh.

"Be sure to tell me if all goes well," he continued.

"Sure thing, Professor"

"I haven't been your Professor in over a year"

"So"

"Suit yourself," he smiled.

When there conversation ended, she turned her phone off and looked at her packed bags. "This is it," she uttered softly, picking up her stuff.

- 4 Hours Later -

Stepping out of the airport, she took a deep breath and took in the familiar surroundings of one of her favorite cities in the world.

"Welcome back to Metropolis, Lois," she says to herself before whistling to hail for a cab. After getting herself settled in, she decided it was time to visit Mr. and Mrs. Kent


	3. Episode 3 Converged

**Title**: Lois Lane: Converged  
**Author**: Nadia Mack  
**Rating**: PG  
**Disclaimer**: I Own Nothing  
**Timeline**: Post-Commencement, End of summer 2005  
**Summary**: Three-Part Story. Beginnings, New Heights and Converge. - Kent Home, Smallville KA -

Lois parks her rent-a-car by the Kent driveway; she didn't think that after two years, the town would still have such an affect in her. When she drove through it, she was immediately brought back to the Meteor Shower and all the devastation it left behind.

Nightmares didn't just exist in her dreams anymore.

Holding herself together, she owed it to The Kent's to visit them, she still felt that after everything they've done for her when she stayed with them, anything she did to repay them didn't feel enough.

Slowly making her way to the front porch, she made sure to take her time, so she could take in her surroundings. Despite the hardships, this farm was her first home, it truly was.

bark bark

Lois turned around and was greeted by nothing but slob and fur. Dare she say it; she's missed him a lot.

"Shelby!" She hugged him and brushed her hands through his soft golden fur. He wasn't the only one missed, Shelby missed her too. "How ya doin, boy? Missed me?"

barks

She smiled. "Yeah, I missed you too." She didn't have to worry about sneezing too much anymore, she found herself a pretty good doctor to help with that overseas.

Just then, Martha Kent stepped out of the house wondering what all the commotion was. She gaped in surprise. "Lois!" she exclaimed, wiping her hand on her apron and sprinting to hug the young woman. "How are you?" she says, still in a hug. She let her go and looked at her more closely. "You look beautiful"

Lois blushed at the compliment. Martha Kent always had a way of making her feel very welcome.

"Thanks, you too"

They hug once more.

"Come inside, the boys are at the market. I was just about to make lunch"

"You don't have to do that," insisted Lois, but Martha would have none of it. "Fine, but I'm setting the table." Martha happily agreed to her demands.

Ten minutes later, Clark arrived home with bags of groceries on both hands while his dad unloaded the bags on the porch. It wasn't until he reached the living room did he hear fits of laughter coming in from the kitchen.

He didn't know they were having company.

Clark stopped in his tracks when he realized who the other person is with his mother. Frankly, at first he didn't believe his ears, but as he listened closer, it was becoming more and more evident whose voice that belonged to.

Watching them converse, he let out a high pitched "Hi." His voice startled both ladies unexpectedly. Then again, the visitor occupying the chair next to his mother was unexpected as well.

She didn't say a word, but she smiled.

"Martha, whose car is that outside?" Jonathan said, entering from the kitchen. When he saw the guest in the house, he says, "Lois"

She turned and greeted him with a hug and an affectionate smile, a welcome far greater than what Clark received just seconds ago.

"Hey Mr. Kent… you look great"

"So do you," replied Jonathan, his eyes swerving between his wife and son. The tension in the air suddenly came out of nowhere, but Lois seems to be taking it all in stride.

Noting his son's quick faltering demeanor, he signals to Martha outside. "I have a few more things to clean up, why don't you and Clark catch up, okay," Jonathan says, giving Lois one more hug before going outside with his wife.

For the first time in over two years, neither Lois nor Clark knew what to say.

She cocked her head to the side. "Need a hand?" she says after a moment of uncomfortable silence.

"Huh?" Clark jumped at the sound of her voice, of all the things to say… he looked down to his hands and noticed the groceries he still held. "No, I'm okay," he answered weakly.

He put the groceries on the kitchen counter, keeping his eyes focused on anything but her. When he was done, he turned back to see that Lois remained silent. It appeared she avoided him as well because she was staring outside at nothing in particular.

"So how are you?" Clark clumsily asked. He didn't know what to say to her anymore. They're like strangers now.

But he did notice a change.

Many things about her had changed. The way she dressed, her posture, the way her laughter when he heard them earlier seem to be filled with so much happiness, and most of all was the silence. Never since he'd known her did she ever practice the art of silence so effortlessly.

"You look great by the way," he complimented when she didn't respond to his first question.

"Thanks," she says.

Clark wished he could read her as well as he read other people. Somehow, Lois had a way to fly under his radar without him noticing.

"I should go," she added, walking past him without a glance back.

Reflexes forced him to grab her wrist. "Wait!" he says. Lois stopped abruptly and spun around, looking back at Clark. "Could we talk… please?"

She saw how much he needed her to talk to him, but there was still a part of her that was reluctant to give him the time of day. Going against her own advice, she nodded.

"Do you mind if we talk at the loft?" she asked politely.

Clark was a little thrown by her nice behavior and subconsciously nodded his head by her request.

- The Loft -

Walking up the steps to the Loft, she noted how little it has changed the past couple of years. The telescope by the window. The couch by the stairs. The scattered books all throughout. It's like seeing an old friend again, but then again, she could just turn around and there he was.

"What did you want to talk about?" she asked when Clark himself didn't know where to start.

"Why'd you leave?" he says going right down to business.

"I needed to get away," she answered simply.

"From me," he concluded.

Lois raised her eyes in consternation. "Don't flatter yourself"

"Then what?" he countered, becoming upset. "You never even said goodbye"

She gives him a sardonic laugh. "Coming from you, I'm sorry that it didn't break my heart"

Her words cut deep. "You didn't even let me explain…" but Lois cut him off.

"You didn't have to, Clark." If he wanted the truth from her, he's going to get it. "It wasn't about you leaving, it was about you not telling anyone. Not a phone call, a letter, or even a postcard. Your parents told me you needed to be somewhere and that you'll be back, and for a while, I believed them… but then I'd hear your mom cry many nights and your dad struggling to keep the farm together… and then I realized… they had no idea where you were. They were worried about their son, a son they loved very much and you didn't even give them the time of day." Her voice rose dangerously loud as she ended her strong explanation.

Clark held his emotions together. She was right is so many ways. How could he make her understand? "I had my reasons, if you would just let me…"

"Don't. We didn't start off as friends, seems fitting we end it that way don't you think?"

"They understood where I was," he argued in a weak attempt to defend himself.

She looked him dead in the eyes. "You're their boy not mine. I'm not as forgiving." With those words hanging heavily in the air, she left.

- Kent Home -

Clark entered the house ashamed, hurt but most of all, angry. Angry that Lois Lane has the audacity to come here and start accusing him of not loving his family, his friends.

That's what she was. A friend. Even with their differences, she had been a good friend.

When Martha heard the loud thud, she came into the living room. "Clark, what's wrong?" she asked her son worriedly. "Where's Lois?"

"She left again," he responded rather bitterly. "At least I saw her leaving this time rather than finding out the next day"

"Clark," his mother says sympathetically. She was tired of seeing her son so lonely and unhappy. When he had entered the kitchen earlier and saw Lois next to her, he had smiled that rare smile the family rarely sees anymore.

It lifted her heart to think he'd be happy again.

But it fell as quickly as it had risen.

- Metropolis -

"Mrs. Kent," Lois says rather surprised to see Martha Kent in her apartment building let alone Metropolis.

"Hi, I was hoping we could talk"

"Let me guess, Clark"

She nods. "Clark"

- A few minutes later -

Once Martha was inside and comfortable in a couch Lois couldn't wait to burn, it had been left in the apartment when she rented the place. She had purchased a much nicer one a few days ago, so it won't be in for another day.

"Sorry about the mess, I'm still settling in," she apologized, throwing books and papers on the ground. "I'm normally messier, so I would actually consider this clean," she tried to lighten.

"Its looks fine, Lois," she smiled.

"You're always too kind." She cleared her throat to continue. "So, what's up?"

"You know, Clark really feels terrible after that summer," Martha began to explain. If there was ever a time she had wanted to tell someone the truth, the whole truth, this would be it, but she knew that it was Clark's secret to tell so she tries her best to explain it to Lois without sounding too protective of her son.

"You really don't have to explain"

"But I do, I want you to know how I feel." Martha takes deep breath before continuing. "When I first met you, I didn't know exactly what to think"

"Gee, thanks"

Martha laughs. "No, not like that," she corrected, but Lois understood what she meant and was just messing with her. "But there was something about you… something genuine and real and compassionate…"

"All that and you only met me for a second," she chimed in but then silenced herself when she realized she was being rude.

"I told Clark once that the first time I saw Jonathan, I knew he was the one for me. It's kind of the same thing with you… and Clark for the matter. I saw him and I knew… I knew he was going to be my little boy"

Lois smiles weakly. "Not so little any more," she whispered.

Martha shook her head knowingly. "He'll always be my little boy"

"What do you want me to do?" Lois says, her voice cracking with each word.

"Give him a chance"

"Why?" she questioned wholeheartedly. "Seriously, Mrs. Kent why does he care what I think about him? It isn't like we're the best of friends"

"Aren't you?"

"No," she quickly responded, but then took it back. "I guess we were okay friends"

"He may not show it, but Clark really appreciates you"

Lois chuckles at the idea.

"I doubt that"

"You haven't been here for the last two years, Lois. You leaving really hurt him. I'm not saying forgive him, but I do want you to understand and if you feel it isn't good enough, then tell him, just don't shut him out"

"I didn't realize… he was really upset?" That couldn't be right, she and Clark barely got along. One of the reason's why she stayed away was that she thought Clark didn't want her around too much. With that idea on top of how upset she was about him disappearing, it was easy to forget about him.

"Yes, he was"

She sighed; her life was much less complicated when she didn't care. "All right," she agreed. "No promises though"

"That's more than enough," Martha says, reaching in to hug her. Lois welcomed her embrace.

Once Martha left, Lois looked up to the ceiling and fell flat on her back atop her bed. She didn't like it, but Mrs. Kent was right, she left without giving Clark the benefit of an explanation. Besides, she never needed an explanation and he didn't owe it to her to give her one either, she just wished that when his parents and friends needed him the most, he could've at least been there.

Casting those thoughts aside, she quickly fell asleep.

- The following Day -

Her first day at Met-U again and she's running late, sort of. She's made an effort to arrive at least 10 minutes early to any appointments and classes aren't an exception. Sitting with dozens of other students, they were all pretty crammed up there.

Luckily for her, she finds herself a seat.

Five minutes left until class starts, Lois takes out her notepad and tape recorder and prepares herself. The tape recorder was Professor Dela Vega's idea; he always said that some times, you've got to read between the lines. In the beginning, reading between the lines has either gotten her a headache or a D. At this point, she prefers the former.

With class starting, her new Professor, Professor Jacoby is introducing the outline for the semester when a late student enters abruptly stopping his introduction.

Lois couldn't believe who it was.

"Mr. Kent, if you're going to be in my class, you'd better start exercising timely manners. Hurry, take a seat"

He nods embarrassingly.

Looking up into the sea of students, there weren't any seats available.

From the top, noting his sudden shyness, Lois asked the guy next to her if he could perhaps move down and a couple seats.

At the bottom, Clark noticed a shift in the middle row and was surprised to see a bunch of students move to make room, and then, he realized why.

He didn't know what to say.

"Mr. Kent, are you going to sit down?"

"Oh yeah, sorry, of course." He rushed up the stairs and looked at the row and saw the empty seat next to her.

Lois is still shaking her head in disbelief. 'What are the odds?' she thought idly to herself before gesturing to the seat next to her.

Getting to his seat, he looks at Lois in confusion. He was going to say thank you but she beat him to it. 

"You're welcome"

Clark smiles for the first time all week. He found it difficult to sit next to Lois and pay attention to class. He had no idea she was attending Met-U again, maybe perhaps this is another chance to start over.

When class ended, she got up and left.

Clark looked on. Well, maybe not start over just yet.

He decided right then and there to go after her.

She was a lot faster than he realized because by the time he got to the hall, Lois had made a left turn and went clear out of his view. Clark quickly picked up his pace while doing his best to be discreet amongst the crowd.

Turning the same corner Lois had just a few seconds ago, she was nowhere in his line of sight.

He sighed, greatly frustrated.

Shaking his head in disappointment, he turns to leave until he spotted the familiar reflection of one Lois Lane through a window.

Clark quickly spun around and saw her across the street sitting in the shade beneath a maple tree. With one deep breath, he slowly approached her.

"Lois," he softly called out so as to not startle her.

She kept her head angled towards her book but her eyes looked up to meet his.

"Clark," she dutifully answered.

"Can we talk?" Clark asked her shyly.

Over the course of the year he has known her, he often found it difficult to stay mad at her, even back when she lived with his family in Smallville. She would do something completely grating on his nerves but then, it'd go away and the feeling often left him confused.

Lois goes back to reading her book.

"I could die of shock right about now. You were always complaining about the lack of dead air whenever I'm around," she commented lightly, still avoiding eye contact.

"That was a long time ago," he defends. "Besides, I like it when you talk." His jaw tensed after saying those words. He had no idea where that confession came from.

Lois must've noticed, because this time, she met him eye to eye.

"I'm sorry," she says obscurely, taking Clark by surprise.

"Sorry? Why are you sorry?"

"About earlier," she cleared but then raised her hand. "Don't get me wrong… I meant every word… but I'm sorry for attacking you the way I did. You were right, I don't know everything, I just know how I feel and for that, I apologize"

"I'm sorry too, if that's any consolation," Clark replied sincerely. He gestures to a space next to her. "Do you mind if I join you?"

Lois nods. "It's a free country"

Clark smiled at the improvement of their conversation and took his spot besides her, resting his elbows on his knees.

"My mom let me read your letters," he revealed, hoping to further their conversation. He missed this, the talking. They did it a lot back then.

"That's a lot of letters," she responded blankly.

When he read those letters, it was always so full of life.

"I'm glad you're happy," he admitted, careful not to reveal his disorienting feelings whenever he's around her.

"Define happy"

"Aren't you?" he questioned, eyes raised in a bit of confusion.

"I guess… sometimes I am"

"I know you and I didn't always get along… but you matter to me." Clark revealed suddenly. Where that came from either, he had no idea.

Lois shifted a bit uncomfortably at his present use of 'matter.'

"You left and all of the sudden, I missed you," he added softly.

"Is that why you read my letters?"

Clark shrugged, unsure what his thoughts were trying to convey. "For the first few months after you left, I kind of thought it was temporary, like you would come back and we'd work things out."

"That doesn't answer my question"

"I waited for you," he expressed suddenly. "I don't know why, but I did. When a car pulls over I rush outside hoping it was you. When the phone rings, I think 'maybe it's her.' But never... I was gone three months, Lois. You stayed away from me for two years"

"Is that what you think? You think I went away to avoid you?" She says with raised eyebrows. 

"Didn't you?"

She laughs at the possibility. "No," she expressed, mildly amused. "Just because everyone else works around your life doesn't mean I do"

"I didn't mean it like that," he replied defensively. Why does she always make things complicated?

"But it was very much implied," she quickly retorted.

"That's not it!"

"Okay, then for argument's sake, let's say that it was. I left for a number of reasons, but that's not to say you weren't one of them. It's just, the others happened to be a lot more important"

"Great," he remarked sarcastically. Lois always had to be brutally honest.

She smiled at him this time.

"I've been lazy a long time, Clark. One time, I was content living my life day by day, but after the meteor shower, everything that I thought was insignificant changed. I wanted my life to matter, if not to the world, at least for me. That's why I left for Tokyo. Lucy needed help, even though she didn't want it, I want her to know that I'm there for her. Always…"

"I wish you would've said goodbye"

"Just because I wanted to change my ways didn't mean I wasn't angry with you"

"I still wanted a goodbye," he pressed. He hurt a lot of people when he stayed away for three months with no communication to his family, but to him, three months was nothing compared to Lois' two years. She hurt him too.

"I didn't think we were that friendly," she replied hastily.

"You thought wrong." Clark surprised himself more and more with how he was aggressively trying to mend their friendship. "You want to get some lunch?" he asked.

Lois watched him curiously.

"Are you asking me out?" she asked, surprised.

He shrugged; he hadn't realized that his question came out that way until she noticed.

"I… uh… Yes," he replied embarrassingly. "Unless you don't want to," he added. He certainly didn't want to pressure her, particularly since their relationship had been in limbo for over two years. He wanted to start over, he truly did, and he just wants to do it right this time.

Lois didn't know what to say, think, or do. She was still reluctant to carry out a friendship with him again let alone any other kind of relationship. Truthfully, she had never really considered him as a romantic option for herself, although, she does admit he was easy on the eyes.

"I'm sorry, I didn't see that coming"

Clark kept himself from looking disappointed, but the frown on his face made it hard not to.

"I shouldn't have asked," he attempted to take back. He already knew it had been too late. The damage has been done; Lois Lane knew what he wanted.

Lois shook her head, trying to comprehend and analyze what he asked as quickly as her mind can process it. All the training her Professor had instilled in her was not helping her in this moment.

"You asked me out," she unconsciously said loudly to herself.

Clark wasn't sure if she was just repeating what had happened or if the statement was directed to him.

"Yeah," he admitted, although he was wondering if he should've just remained quiet.

She finally turns to him. "I'm a bit confused Clark," she finally came to grips with it. "You're asking me out… why?" She was genuinely curious this time.

"Because I'm not 17 anymore," he explained. "Because I realized that my life was more than I made it out to be. You weren't the only one that changed, Lois. I did too," he honestly admitted. "I would really like to get to know you again"

She shook her head. "You never knew me, Smallville"

Clark grinned.

"Whose fault was that?"

"Certainly not mine," she replied, smirking.

They both laugh.

When the laughter died down, Clark got up but bent down to meet Lois' gaze at eye-level. He extended his hand out in a gentlemanly manner.

"What do you say…" he smiled hopeful. "Will you go out with me?" He was taking a risk, he knew that, but it was a risk he was more than willing to take.

Though ten times more guarded than she was before, Lois cautiously took his hand with her own and that's when it happened. It went by so quickly, they almost didn't notice.

They shared something.

A spark…

The feeling had her crossing unfamiliar territory. "One condition," she says.

"Anything," Clark easily replied.

"Don't disappear"

Clark smiles hugely; thrilled she was giving this a chance. "Not this time," he eagerly replied.

**The End**

**Author's Notes**: Buwhahahaha… Thanks you all, I'll let your imaginations run wild with this one. This was pretty hard for me to write, I'm like, trying to put myself in their position and it's hard some times because 1. I'm no alien and 2. I wished I was really Lois Lane


End file.
